Water. A vital nutrient, yet one that is inaccessible to many worldwide.

The World Health Organization reports that 780 million people don't have access to clean water, and 3.4 million die each year due to water-borne diseases. But an Israeli company thinks it can play a part in alleviating the crisis by producing drinking water from thin air.

Water-Gen has developed an Atmospheric Water-Generation Units using its "GENius" heat exchanger to chill air and condense water vapor.

"The clean air enters our GENius heat exchanger system where it is dehumidified, the water is removed from the air and collected in a collection tank inside the unit," says co-CEO Arye Kohavi....

In desert regions this is going to take more than a fee cents of electricity to make water!Psalms 8 3 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have ordained; 4 what is man, that you think of him? What is the son of man, that you care for him? 5 For you have made him a little lower than God, a and crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You make him ruler over the works of your hands. You have put all things under his feet: 7 All sheep and cattle, yes, and the animals of the field, 8 The birds of the sky, the fish of the sea, and whatever passes through the paths of the seas. 9 Yahweh, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Personally, I view mans intelligence, the technology man has dreamed up, and the sheer brainpower that seems to emanate from a wet, brown, wavy hunk of meat, a celebration and display of God's awesome creative powers. The creator made a man and woman who were creatively self sufficient. God just provided the water, rocks, dirt, minerals, vegetation, precious metals, etc, and look at what man has done with those limited supplies. Pretty amazing to me.

stuff wrote:"Remember, don't drink the water...Water-Gen has developed an Atmospheric Water-Generation Units using its "GENius" heat exchanger to chill air and condense water vapor.

"The clean air enters our GENius heat exchanger system where it is dehumidified, the water is removed from the air and collected in a collection tank inside the unit," says co-CEO Arye Kohavi.

"From there the water is passed through an extensive water filtration system which cleans it from possible chemical and microbiological contaminations," he explains. "The clean purified water is stored in an internal water tank which is kept continuously preserved to keep it at high quality over time."

Yes, you need a something that does keep metallic and other contaminants out. Besides that there are already cheap ones to get drinking water from the air. I'm sure the SAS Survival Guide would tell you how to do it, and U.S. Army Survival Manual FM 21-76 [Kindle Edition (This one is cheaper and sometimes the Amazon App store have them for free on their special of the day.) So, solar distillation isn't something new, and it can be done on a low cost individual basis. By the way, both these books can be had in printed form from Amazon, and again the U.S. Army manual might be cheaper to buy directly from the U.S. Govt. Printing Office. They make for fun reading. You might be surprised (especially Penny, ) all that stuff in nature that can kill you.

Anyway, I haven't read the article, and I wasn't very impressed with the blurb that SA put up.

In case you didn't see the Essential Answer, dehumidifier condensate (the water that the dehumidifier produces) can be loaded with biological contaminants and metallic residues that are not safe to drink. As this graphic from a Samsung dehumidifier manual advises, please do not drink the water that collects in your dehumidifier.

Potable water-making devices

Going beyond just dehumidification, there are appliances on the market that can make potable water from the air. Two such models suitable for home use are Air2Water's dolphin line, which the company claims can produce clean water at a cost of $0.16 to $0.52 per gallon, and RainCloud's C-15, which costs about $1,000 wholesale. However, these potable water making devices produce water with low to no mineral content, so the water will likely have the same flat taste that distilled water does (see below).

Distilled water: Safe to drink, but not necessarily good to drink" (A Martin)http://alumni.stanford.edu/get/page/magazine/article/?article_id=29155

Basically. Interssting because although the technology may be "new", the idea isn't. I even remember the general principle being exploited in an old sci-fi flick...Vin Deisel's Pitch Black. With water being a commidity, the lack of desalination plants doesn't surprise me much either. Not unlike the antiquated 4 stroke engine which should have been laid to rest long, long ago.